Basin



Feb. 21, 1939. c. HIIWINIDSOR 2,147,805

BASIN Filed Nov. 1a, 1936 2 Shegts-Sheet 1 Feb. 21, 1939. c H w so 2,147,805

o BASIN Fild Nov. 18, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 6mm .7 1. 10mm w mn 2.141%, f W

Patented Feb. 21, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BASIN Charles H. Windsor, Palmyra, N. J. Application November 18,1936, Serial No. 111,5 19

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to sanitary receptacles and method of making same, and, as here shown, is applied to a sanitary wash basin designedfor single individualuse and adapted to be used in conjunction withthe ordinary lavatory basin. It is to be understood, however, that adaptations of the invention other than that specifically shown may be made.

Its purpose, in the illustrative disclosure of the invention here made, is to provide a basin which can be manufactured and soldat a reasonable price; which can be readily vended in public lavatories, and which permits each user to procure a completely sanitary, sterilized basin, and eliminate any danger of contamination from commonly used basins.

I accomplish the objects by forming the basin of a material, here shown as a paper-like materiaLcrinkled orcreped uniformly over a definite area, which, in its normal position, is substantially flat so as to permit ready and compact storage, stacking, and vending, in a minimum amount ofspace, but which material, when subjected to pressuraiparticularly in the presence of moisture, will expand from its normally flat condition to a bulged receptacle or basin-like formationof sufficient volume to provide the proper amount of :water for washing purposes without rupturing or tearing the material.

Inthe drawings herewith,.and which forma part of this specification, I have shown one embodimentof @myinventiombut it is to be understood that this disclosure is illustrative and in no sense restrictive.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a View in plan of the blank from which the receptacle is formed in place on a lavatory, the bowl, slab, and fixtures being shown in dotted lines.

Figure 2 is a view in cross section showing the formed receptacle after it has been subjected to pressure and moisture.

Figure 3 is a cross sectional view, somewhat enlarged, showing the blank and the binder or support for the blank.

Figure 4 is a perspective view, somewhat enlarged, showing the corner connection of the binder or support for the blank.

Figure 5 is a plan of a portion of the blank, somewhat enlarged, showing the blank after it has been subjected to pressure and moisture to illustrate the bulging or basin-forming action of the material.

Figure 6 is a plan view of a portion of the blank to illustrate variation in creping of the paper.

Referring to the drawings by numbers, like numbers indicating like parts inthe several views, l0 indicates the material, which may be of any suitable size and shape, it being here shown as rectangular. While this material may vary in its make-up and texture, so long as it iscapable of maintaining its substantially flat condition normally, and expanding or bulging under pressure, particularly when moistened, I have found that aparchmentizedpaper oi matted vegetable fiber of what is known as the self-sizing type, admirably adapted to this purpose. A paper of this type has the quality of expanding to a very con-- siderable extent when moistened, without disintegrating or tearing. I do not, however, depend on thisquality alone, and do not,therefore, limit my invention to that particular paper-like material. 'Ihejsheet [0 will be crinkled or'creped, so that while-a normally relatively flat sheet orblank is-produced, the creping of that sheet when it is subjected to pressure and particularly pressure in the presence of moisture, such as will occur when it is placed under a faucet and pressure and moisture of the water is imposed on it, will straigten out .and take a relatively smooth condition. This straightening out of the crinkles or crepes in the paper results in a bulging or expandingof the blank to basin-like form without rupturing the sheet. I have ,found thatpaper of this character will, when subjected to the soften- ,ingyeffect of moisturatogether with pressure such as will be exerted by the weight of the liquid poured upon it, readily and quickly expand by reason of the crinkles or creping in the paper straightening out into a smooth condition to give the desired basin formation.

The depth of the basin will depend on the area of the sheet and upon the depth of the creping of the sheet, it being obvious that a deeply creped sheet will have a greater capacity for expansion than would a sheet which is only lightly creped. With a rectangular blank of approximately 10" x 13", creped in what might be termed an average creping, a basin of approximately five inches in depth will be formed. when the blank is placed beneath the lavatory faucet and subjected to the pressure and moisture of the water, the rapidity of expansion being increased to a considerable extent if warm or hot water be utilized. By increasing or decreasing the depth of the creping, it will be obvious that greater or less expansion of the sheet when subjected to pressure and moisture will occur. This action will take place without weakening or rupturing the material of which the blank is formed, and it maintains this expanded basinlike formation practically indefinitely without disintegration.

For practical use, it is desirable, of course, that the edges of the blank be fixed in order that the expansion will take place in the body of the sheet material without any bodily movement of the sheet. While this securing of the edges of the sheet may be accomplished in various ways, I find that by reinforcing the edges of the sheet so as to stiffen and hold them and permit the sheet to be readily handled is a simple and practical way of accomplishing this.

While this reinforcing or stiffening of the edge may be done in various ways, I have here shown one practical way of doing it, and that is by providing a crimped metal binder I l, as shown in the cross section of Figure 3, and in the edge View, Figure 2, in which the thin metal is crimped about the edge of the sheet, as shown. As shown in Figure 4, the ends of these metal strips are clamped one upon the other so as to form a light rectangular frame which will maintain the sheet in a normally fiat, somewhat tensioned condition and serve to support it upon the edges of the lavatory bowl in position to receive water from the faucet, as shown in Figure 1.

As stated, means other than the metal binding strips here shown and described may be used to maintain the edges of the blank ID in fixed position, without departing from my invention. This embodiment, however, is very satisfactory and serviceable. Furthermore, it can be cheaply constructed and the blank may be vended from mechanical vending machines and manipulated and handled conveniently.

The method of forming the article just described comprises the steps of preparing a sheet of material, preferably expansible without rupture in the presence of moisture, such asv the parchmentized paper, above referred to as a suitable type of material; crinkling or creping such sheet without changing its normally fiat condition, confining the edges of the sheet in any suitable manner to prevent bodily movement or folding of the sheet, and finally subjecting it to moisture and pressure. This final step of applying moisture and pressure to the sheet to distend it by taking out the crinkles or crepings will, of course, be accomplished in a practical way by placing it beneath the faucet andallowing the stream of water to moisten and press upon the sheet so as to distend it.

Such variations from the disclosures here made, either as to design or mechanical make-up or in the steps of the method, as involve merely the skill of the mechanic or designer, may, of course, be made, and still be within the purview of my invention.

I claim:--

1. As a new article of manufacture designed for ultimate use as a basin; a preformed initially substantially fiat sheet having closely arranged crinklings or crepings throughout its area of such form and so arranged as to permit substantially symmetrical expansion of the sheet in all directions to form a basin, and a binder secured to the edge of said sheet; said binder being of relatively stiff material capable of initially maintaining the sheet in its substantially fiat condition; the material of said sheet being such that under the weight and moistening effect of liquid charged thereon when the article is supported in horizontal position by the binder, the free central portion of the sheet will be downwardly bulged from the horizontal plane to basin-like form due to obliterative tendency of the wetness and pressure on the crinklings; the supporting edge of the sheet being sustained in its original position by the binder; the material of the sheet also being such that the sheet is resistant to leakage and has the capacity of maintaining its basin-like form at least for a useful period without rupture by the weight or moistening action of the liquid in its bulged portion; the normal bulge capacity of the sheet being determined by forming the original sheet with crinklings or crepings of appropriate depth.

2. The new and improved method of forming basins, which consists in providing a normally flat sheet with closely arranged crinklings or crepings throughout its area of such form and so arranged as to permit substantially symmetrical expansion of the sheet in all directions, fixedly securing an edge of said sheet to provide a circumscribed area in normally fiat condition, and charging liquid upon the normally fiat circumscribed portion of said crinkled or creped sheet to obliterate the crinklings of the sheet by weight and moisture of the charged liquid so as to bulge or distend the circumscribed area of sheet into basin-like form.

CHARLES H. WINDSOR. 

